American Barbecue: The Brief History of Grill

Many people associate barbecue with the USA. Americans are proud of this way of cooking and they are showing their proudness in different ways. For example, there are various barbecue contests in the USA. Kansas City is not only the center of America, but also the place, where there is the biggest number of barbecue restaurants in the world. Therefore, it is called the capital of jazz and barbecue. However, one more American city – Lexington – claims to be the world capital of barbecue, because there is more than one barbecue restaurant per 1000 inhabitants. When you plan to visit these or other cities, we recommend you to use car rental at Portland International Airport.

As Americans say, precisely the USA is the birthplace of the grill. Their arguments are confirmed by the history of the origin of the process of cooking meat on the grill.

The first mention of the preparation of meat in such an unusual way refers to the pre-Columbian era. Until that time, no one knew about it. In the Caribbean Sea, which is located in the western part of the Atlantic Ocean, on the small island of Domenica, the indigenous tribes of the Indians cooked the meat of the animals on a lattice of strong branches, placing it above the fire charcoal at a certain distance. Thus, the spiced meat was well fried evenly, while at the same time saturated with the smell of smoke.

Despite the fact that at least 16 hours were spent on cooking meat, the locals were very fond of the dish itself and its way of cooking. The process itself was elevated almost to the rank of a ritual.

The first settlers from Europe also liked this dish, and it firmly took hold in their menu and went into use. After some time, the process of cooking meat and other dishes on open fire has been constantly improved. It became the rule to invite friends, relatives and just acquaintances to barbecue dinners. Such gatherings often lasted for several days. Estimating that this can be profitable business, indigenous inhabitants very quickly began to open pubs, where in addition to meat and vegetable dishes, alcohol was also offered.

After the end of the civil war between the North and the South, the pubs began to be enlarged and thus the first grilling establishments appeared. However, the first barbecue restaurant appeared in America only after the First World War. The future auto baron Henry Ford started his business with coal briquettes for barbecue restaurants, the production of which he successfully established.

In the fifties of the twentieth century, a real revolution took place in the grill industry. With the advent of technology, it became possible to create a grill-boiler, which had a significant and obvious advantage over the already familiar grill. It allowed controlling the cooking process. It stimulated the development of new cooking features and unusual dishes. Then came the time of electric boilers and boilers running on liquefied gas. To date, any private home in America necessarily has a special area for grilling and barbecue, where it is customary for the whole family to spend the weekend and have fun.

Americans very often focus on the fact that the taste of their beef is the most special. The fact is that the meat of specially grown animals is taken for grill. It is known that many US presidents arrange a barbecue to raise funds for their electoral companies. The church in the USA often does the same thing.

Often it is not recommended to marinate meat. It is better to use sauce that will help to deepen the taste of the steak and its piquancy. The choice of these sauces is infinitely great, in each region there are their own variations. From ordinary tomato sauce, to the most truly creative.

Here are some examples of the fact that every American state is having their own sauce:

In southern Illinois, the sauce has a special flavor and a delicate flavor;

In Texas, it is the hottest and most “secret”;

In Alabama, there is an original white sauce;

In Maryland – horseradish sauce.

In general, there are so many sauces that Americans even organize annual competitions. They try very hard and add to the tomato paste everything possible, in order to get the most unusual taste. The jury evaluate the samples very seriously and award the competitors in categories ‘Tomato pepper sauce’, ‘Tomato soft sauce’, ‘Marinade’, ‘Mustard’ and ‘Special’.

Many American families buy special sets for cooking meat, which are not limited to just a barbecue grill. The multifunctional system includes a grill-barbecue, a smokehouse, an oven, a smoker and a cooking surface.